Believe

And when Jesus entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, imploring Him, and saying, "Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, fearfully tormented." Jesus said to him, "I will come and heal him." But the centurion said, "Lord, I am not worthy for You to come under my roof, but just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I also am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to this one, 'Go!' and he goes, and to another, 'Come!' and he comes, and to my slave, 'Do this!' and he does it." Now when Jesus heard this, He marveled and said to those who were following, "Truly I say to you, I have not found such great faith with anyone in Israel.” ... And Jesus said to the centurion, "Go; it shall be done for you as you have believed." And the servant was healed that very moment. Matthew 8:5-10, 13 

Great faith! You would have thought that the multitude of Jewish people in Israel when Jesus was there would have been great believers in the Messiah—but they weren’t looking for a healer—they were looking for a political leader to free them from the Roman oppression. Here was a Roman soldier looking for healing for his servant. It must have been a cherished or hard working, devoted servant for the centurion to seek Jesus’ help. In Luke 7:2, it is recorded that this servant (or slave) was highly regarded, sick and about to die. Where had this centurion heard about Jesus’ power? He hadn’t grown up studying the Torah or looking for the Messiah. Great faith! Do you have such great faith? We can’t ask Jesus to actually come to our home…but we can ask for His healing touch…for the Holy Spirit to comfort, strengthen, and protect us or our loved ones—those we honor and respect, just like that centurion’s servant. And like the centurion, we can believe. Jesus can still heal.  

RSVP: Jesus is inviting us to believe—to believe in His healing power. How will you respond to Him today? 

Prayer ~ Jesus, I do believe in Your power and Your strength. Touch and heal my family, friends, and neighbors who are in need of Your mercy for their bodies, minds and spirits. You know their needs—and I thank you for Your grace and healing touch. 

Friday’s Feast at the King’s Table

It is time to get ready for Thanksgiving. Here’s a tasty cranberry sauce that you can prepare a couple hours or the day before your special meal. My family loves pears—so this is a special addition to our menu. Sometimes I chop up the whole orange and add that, along with the juice. 

Cranberry Sauce

1 bag - 12 ounce fresh cranberries
3 cups finely chopped pears (about 2 medium pears)
1 cup fresh squeezed orange juice with the zest of one orange  
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 cup sugar, or less to taste
3 tablespoons minced crystallized ginger (candied ginger)
1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom

Combine all ingredients in a large saucepan. Cover and bring to a gentle boil over a medium-low heat. Cook about 15 minutes. Uncover, reduce heat to a simmer and cook about 5 minutes until sauce thickens.
Transfer the sauce to a heatproof serving dish and cool 10 minutes. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving. Makes 3 cups. Serve with turkey, and then on turkey sandwiches the next day.  

Adapted from an Associated Press Recipe in 2008.

© 2014 by Mickey M. Hunacek. All rights reserved.

All scripture quoted from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) unless otherwise noted.